Month: January 2017

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. >> Last week, the Charter Review Commission voted unanimously in favor of a council-manager form of government. In a traditional council-manager form, the council selects the mayor and each council member shares the same powers. It’s more of a ceremonial role. The commission believes strongly that Saratoga Springs needed a mayor who could provide dynamic leadership and rejected the weak mayor model during a Jan. 26 meeting.

“The vast majority of cities have a hybrid form that combine the political leadership and coalition building of the strong mayor model with the professional expertise and administrative efficiencies of a city manager or administrator,” said commission chair Bob Turner.

The commission supports direct elections for the mayor and also four-year terms.

“I think we want a mayor who is accountable to the voters,” said commission member Laura Chodos.

Mike Los said he felt that the mayor would be more effective in collaboratively working with stakeholders to address city challenges if he or she were not bogged down with the details of managing the city’s staff.

“I think Saratoga Springs voters want a visible leader who can reach out to the community and build consensus on a vision for the future,” said Barb Thomas.

Under the proposed charter, the mayor would have the power to create ad hoc committees, as they can now, as well as appointment to land use and ethics boards, but the commission felt that the appointment to city boards should be subject to a confirmation vote by the city council since many have a seven-year term.

The commission did not decide whether the mayor should be full time or not.

“Every former mayor who has spoken to us said it was a 50+ hour a week job with part time pay,” said Turner

Gordon Boyd thinks Saratoga Springs needs someone who can articulate the city’s interests to outside stakeholders like NYRA, the State government and the business community.

The commission reviewed the research of New York’s preeminent constitutional scholar and SUNY Professor Gerald Benjamin on the appointment and removal of city managers. The commission supported having the city council be able to appoint and remove the city manager,

“I like having a one-year contract for the city manager to keep him or her on toes working to meet the needs of the city and city council,” said Pat Kane.

The commission also supported having clear qualifications in the charter for the manager/administrator, covering the education and experience of the city manager in the charter.

“Both law professors I have spoken with said this prevents a city council from hiring an unqualified political crony to do their bidding,” said Turner.

The commission will hold its next two meetings on February 2 and 6 from 7 to 9 p.m. at City Hall

The commission will discuss the role of county supervisors, ethics provisions, the city attorney’s office, the identification of departments and land use boards, vacancies, the Recreation commission and the city clerk.

The Charter Review Commission has defined the role the mayor would play in a new form of government they plan to propose to voters May 30 — even as council members continue to debate whether to fund the special election.

Under a proposed council-manager form, which would replace the commission form in place for over 100 years, the mayor would have a “dynamic” role, the review group’s members announced in a news release. In a traditional council-manager form, the mayor is selected by the council, has the same powers as other council members and plays more of a ceremonial role.

“However, the commission felt strongly that Saratoga Springs needed a mayor who could provide dynamic leadership and rejected the weak mayor model,” the release states.

Chairman Bob Turner said very few city governments use purely strong-mayor or council-manager models, instead using a hybrid that “combines the political leadership and coalition building of the strong-mayor model with the professional expertise and administrative efficiencies of a city manager or administrator.”

The commission is also proposing the mayor be elected and the term length be extended from two years to four.

The 15-member group, appointed by Mayor Joanne Yepsen to review the city’s charter in June, has not decided whether the mayor should be full- or part-time. But Turner noted that every former Spa City mayor interviewed by the group said the job, though technically part-time, has required 50-plus hours per week.

The City Council plans to consider the Charter Commission’s request for $46,000 to cover operational costs and $37,000 in election funds at its next meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 7.

A special meeting previously set by Finance Commissioner Michele Madigan to consider the funds didn’t reach a quorum this past Tuesday due to the absence of Madigan, Accounts Commissioner John Franck and Public Works Commissioner Anthony “Skip” Scirocco. All three council members have criticized what would be the city’s first special election, calling it rushed and an added taxpayer expense and saying the referendum vote should be put on the ballot in November instead. Yepsen and Public Safety Commissioner Chris Mathiesen have supported a special election.

The Charter Review Commission contends that state Municipal Home Rule Law 36 gives it the authority to call a special election and have it be funded by the city.

No shows lead to canceled Saratoga Springs meeting on funding new city government vote. Without quoroum, meeting is canceled.

By Wendy Liberatore Updated 11:40 pm, Wednesday, January 25, 2017

Saratoga Springs

The three commissioners who came out against a referendum for a new city form of government were no-shows at a special council meeting Wednesday afternoon.

The meeting, called by Commissioner of Finance Michele Madigan, was meant to approve $37,000 in funds for the creation of a new charter and a public vote in the spring.

Yet Madigan and commissioners John Franck and Anthony “Skip” Scirocco did not appear. Without a quorum, the meeting was canceled.

“It’s a shame that we will not be having an official meeting,” said Mayor Joanne Yepsen. “It’s unfortunate our colleagues are not here to uphold their duty.”

Several members of the charter commission, an independent body, suspect that the commissioners are stalling on their legal obligation to fund the commission because all five, the mayor and the four commissioners, will eventually lose their jobs if voters approve a new charter.

The vote will call for Saratoga Springs to be run by a city manager and a council, not its current form with a mayor and four commissioners.

Madigan said that is not the case. She said she asked the mayor to cancel the meeting because she knew Franck, who had a business engagement, could not be there and felt that all five members of the council should be there.

“Commissioner Scirocco agreed and also stated that he wanted all five members of the City Council to weigh in and vote on this important matter,” said Madigan.

“I am the Commissioner who requested this meeting and I am the Commissioner who requested it be canceled if all members could not be in attendance. There was no reason for the situation that occurred today at 4 p.m.”

Yepsen said she emailed all the commissioners and strongly encouraged them to be present, even after Madigan suggested canceling. To avoid any confusion, Madigan said the commission budget will be on the agenda at the next regular city council meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 7.

“This illustrates the challenges of this form of government,” said Gordon Boyd, a member of the 15-member commission. “One commissioner wants one thing and another wants something else and then it’s stymied. Nothing happens.”

Commissioner of Public Safety Chris Mathiesen did attend the meeting and reassured the charter commission that he supports their work. “I feel very strongly that this should move forward,” said Mathiesen. “I think the group is going in the right direction and I hope all the citizens will be informed. It’s paramount to our city.”

The charter commission has planned a referendum to take place on May 30. Bob Batson of the Government Law Center at Albany Law School is expected to write the charter by the end of February. “The most important thing is the document,” said Bob Turner, the chair of the charter commission. “It needs to be done by the end of February so that we can have three months to educate the public.”

The city’s Charter Review Commission has decided that a “council manager” form of government will go before voters this spring.

The panel last week voted 14-0 to offer voters a chance to replace the current system of five independent commissioners, each elected and responsible for specific aspects of city government, with the council-manager setup. That would feature an elected city council that works with an appointed city manager who oversees all city departments.

At 7 p.m. Tuesday in City Hall, the commission will discuss the issue, including the role of a mayor under a council-manager government, as well as finance provisions, and the role of the city attorney and recreation commission.

Voters will consider the potential change in a referendum scheduled on May 30. If voters accept the change, the new government would start in 2019. If voters reject the change, the current commission government — a century old — will remain in place.

“When we interviewed city managers from Corning and Batavia, I was impressed with their long-term vision for infrastructure improvements, technology and economic growth,” commission member Beth Wurtmann said in a statement. “A strategic 10-year plan under a skilled city manager is what Saratoga Springs needs to stay abreast with 21st century demands.”

Under the proposed change, an elected council would oversee general administration, policy and budgets, as well as name a city manager responsible for day-to-day administrative operations.

“The city manager is forced to squeeze out the waste and inefficiency or lose his job. In Canandaigua, the city council and mayor told the city manager to keep costs down,” said Bob Turner, commission chairman.

Several members also agreed that a council manager government could reduce city expenses and taxes. “I think the city would save money by hiring one professional city manager instead of five deputy commissioners,” said commission member Rob Kuczynski.

“A council-manager structure would reduce political pressures and in-fighting by having the City Council represent the will of the people and the city manager administer the daily operations of the city,” commission member B.K. Keramati said.

Under the current government, voters elect a mayor and four individual commissioners who each oversee areas including finance, accounts, public safety and public works. They have both legislative and executive authority.

“I was on the City Center Parking Garage Task Force in 2001 and saw the plan fall apart due to jurisdictional and political turf conflicts between commissioners,” said committee member Gordon Boyd. “It is 16 years later and we still have no garage. Now, we are competing with at least 30 other cities nationwide to retain Ayco. I am worried that the five silos of the commission form of government inhibit the ability to act quickly.”

A Saratoga Springs committee has chosen May 30th for a special election where city residents may vote on a new form of government. The city’s current form of government has existed for more than a century.

Saratoga Springs’ unique commission-style government has endured numerous tests before. Most recently, a 2012 ballot question to change the city charter failed.

Now, in 2017, voters will have a chance to vote once again on a new system. The special election, set for May 30th, was put in place by the city’s Charter Review Commission.

Commission chair Bob Turner, who also works as an Associate Professor of Political Science at Skidmore College, says the committee spent eight months meeting and talking with the community about the city’s future.

“I think one of the things we heard most clearly from all the business and other community interests, was their feeling that Saratoga government could do better. Not that it was broken, but that it could do better,” said Turner.

A new charter has not yet been drafted, but Turner predicted a document that would include a form of government featuring a mayor, city manager, and a seven-member city council with four-year terms — with term limits.

For the past 102 years, the city has been led by five commissioners that also serve as department heads.

John Franck, Commissioner of Accounts, warned with the vote set to take place on the day after Memorial Day, people may not show up to the polls.

“My concern is you’re putting the constitution of the city up for a vote and by all measurements we’re going to have a very low turnout, and I think that’s a shame,” said Franck.

Franck compared the special election to the annual city school board vote, which he said has about 3 percent turnout.

Turner predicted the vote would bring record turnout. He said holding the special election before the primary election season gets underway in June would provide a chance to take partisan politics out of the decision.

“It would give voters about three months to really study the charter and know what’s in it and give everyone a chance to appreciate the complexities of what we’re suggesting,” said Turner

But there are also objections over costs.

The Charter Review Commission, under state law, has asked Mayor Joanne Yepsen for $46,000 to cover expenses by the committee and $37,000 for the special election.

Finance Commissioner Michele Madigan, however, said she was uncertain the five-member city council would grant the money.

“It takes three votes to allocate funds. So it seems to me, although the vote hasn’t taken place yet, that there is not support on this city council. As in, they do not have three votes for expending funds for a special election,” said Madigan.

Franck argued the costs for the special election could inflate to as much as $50,000 and said he would not vote for the budget request.

Public Works Commissioner Anthony “Skip” Scirocco called the May 30th special election “voter suppression” and said in an email the vote would be a “slap in the face to Saratoga Springs voters who have historically turned out and voted against a change in the form of government.”

Mayor Yepsen said the council needs to give the commission the funding.

“So they can do their job, make their recommendations to the entire community, not to the city council, and let the voters decide. And that’s my position,” said Yepsen.

Update:

An email sent Friday evening after press time indicated that the Charter Commission voted 14-0 in favor of a council-manager form of government. If approved by voters, the new charter would take effect in 2019.

After seven months of interviews, hearings and fact-finding, the Charter Review Commission began drafting a new city charter.

Last month, the commission voted 12-3 to draft a new charter that separates the legislative responsibilities from the administrative ones.

“In drafting a new charter, we wanted to start with the City Council, because a strong Council is at the heart of a responsive and efficient government.” said Bob Turner, commission chair.

The commission discussed the number of members, the length of terms, term limits and the merits of neighborhood districts versus at- large districts.

The first issue discussed was whether to keep the current number of city council members at five. Turner, who teaches political science at Skidmore, pointed out that James Madison, in Federalist #10, said that there is no magic number, however, it must be large enough “in order to guard against the cabals of a few; (but) must be limited to a certain number, in order to guard against the confusion of a multitude.”

The commission reviewed national and New York data on the tremendous variation in the size of city councils. The consensus of the commission was that seven members seemed appropriate for the size of this city.

The second issue discussed was whether to keep the current term length at two years. Former city council members and City Hall employees, in interviews, have stated that campaign politics in the second year of a term detracts from a focus on governance.

Council members felt that having a four-year term would reduce the frequency of fundraising and campaigning. Approximately 70 percent of city governments in America have four year terms. The Charter Review Commission supported staggered elections for the city council.

The most lengthy discussion concerned the merits of neighborhood districts versus at-large elections. Under the current system, commissioners are elected in city-wide elections. Under a neighborhood district system, council members are elected from a neighborhood or smaller geographic area. Candidates would have to live in the district they represent.

Neighborhood districts make it easier for new candidates to run for office since they would only have to reach out to approximately 4,500 voters instead of 18,000. The smaller size would keep campaign costs down and enable an enterprising candidate to potentially knock on every door in their district.

The commission’s studies have revealed that the vast majority of City Council candidates from the past 15 years have come from a small cluster on the central east side of the city. Neighborhood districts would ensure more geographic representation in City Council affairs. Commission members Gordon Boyd and Matt Jones thought the mix of at-large and district representation would reduce NIMBYism in city politics.

The tentative consensus of the commission was that the council members should be a combination of four neighborhood district representatives and three at-large district representatives.

The commission also supported giving the City Council confirmation power over all Mayoral appointments to city boards and judicial appointments pending state law. The commission felt that this was an important step in restoring checks and balances to a new system.

The Charter Review Commission’s next meeting is Thursday, Jan. 19. It will discuss the merits of city manager versus a strong mayor. The current commission form of government was adopted by Saratoga Springs in 1915. There are only two other cities in New York with the Commission form of government, Mechanicville and Sherrill.

The Charter Review Commission is a 15-member citizen board appointed by the Mayor and City Council. A new charter would be placed before the voters in a special election on May 30.